Dark Fired Kentucky Discussion.

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hawke

Lifer
Feb 1, 2014
1,346
4
Augusta, Ga
I'd like to get a little info on Dark Fired Kentucky. What species of tobacco is it made from? Dark Fired Kentucky is more of a process of curing maybe and incorporates both Burley and/or Virginia? I see from reading it is a higher nicotine tobacco which interests me.
Thx

 

petes03

Lifer
Jun 23, 2013
6,212
10,653
The Hills of Tennessee
To the best of my knowledge, Kentucky Dark Fired is predominately Burley that has been smoked while still hanging in the barn.

There was a post on here at one time, with a link to a video of the process.

It would be worth looking it up. I'm sure it can be found on YouTube.

 
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jackswilling

Lifer
Feb 15, 2015
1,777
24
The Growing Fascination with Dark-Fired Kentucky

April 21, 2015 By Russ
When I introduced BlackHouse in 2011, it included a small amount of dark-fired Kentucky. It was only the second blend that I had made with it, and I always treated it (and still do) as a condimental tobacco. I knew of Orlik Dark Strong dark-firedKentucky and Peter Heinrich’s Dark Strong Flake as being fairly stout in their dark-fired content, and that Peterson’s Irish Flake had quite a bit, too. While I liked these blends, It never occurred to me to try to make anything quite that strong. Since that time, though, a number of new blends have hit the market with robust amounts of dark-fired, such as GL Pease’ Jackknife Plug and Mac Baren’s HH Old Dark Fired and HH Bold Kentucky.

Why the sudden interest in this leaf? Maybe it will help to discuss what it is, first. Is dark-fired Kentucky a Burley? It depends on who you talk to. Most people say yes as the raw leaf is certainly more like Burley than any other type of leaf. But the growers refer to it as Kentucky and never call it Burley. In any case, it’s a darker leaf, low in sugar, high in oils and a bold spiciness, even before the fire-curing. Instead of hanging the tobacco is a barn and allowing the air movement to cure the leaf, the barn has a smoldering fire using aromatic woods, in the US, hickory is often used. One common misconception is that, because of its name, it’s only grown and processed in America. Much of the dark-fired, especially in the European market comes from Africa, and since the native woods there are different, the resulting flavor and aroma is different as well.

The smokiness of dark-fired is less pronounced than Latakia, and unlike Latakia, dark-fired Kentucky has a lot of spice and a pretty fair nicotine hit. I consider the flavor to be rustic. The American version, probably due to the soil and wood, has a hearty character, while the African type has a somewhat floral undertone. Until recent years, dark-fired was almost always used as a condimental tobacco, used to add a subtle smoky flavor and a bit of power. But newer blends are using it much more prominently, and the results can be very interesting. I find Orlik’s Dark Strong Kentucky and Mac Baren’s HH Old Dark Fired to exhibit more of the floral note, while HH Bold Kentucky is more earthy, and I think that part of that is due to the fact that it uses both African and American dark-fired.

Dark-Fired takes on a whole new character depending upon what it’s combined with. I like it best when counterbalanced with some sweetness. When I put together my first blend in the RO Series, Fire Storm, I combined some Kentucky with extra-sweet Virginias and a robust amount of Perique. The blend is unabashedly bold, but the sweetness levels out the somewhat harsh nature of the dark-fired. In the case of BlackHouse, and the blend it attempts to emulate, Balkan Sobranie No. 759, it adds a bit of a bass note to deepen the flavor of an otherwise bright and smoky blend.

One of the signature characteristics, for me, is a little bit of a catch in the back of my throat, much like I get from a spicy cigar. I don’t mind it, but it’s helpful to know if I’m sampling a new blend because it lets me know if there’s Kentucky in the mix.

Will I ever approach dark-fired Kentucky as the main component in a blend? Anything’s possible, but the blend would have to be very special. But there’s a uniquely processed form of dark-fired that I’ve recently gotten a chance to “play” with, and this could be very interesting. I’ll let you know as things progress.
http://www.talkingtobacco.com/2015/04/the-growing-fascination-with-dark-fired-kentucky/

 

pitchfork

Lifer
May 25, 2012
4,030
605
DFK is a "dark" or "dark tobacco" that is fire cured. As noted above, it can also be air cured.
The Univ. of Kentucky even has a dark tobacco extension service.

http://darktobacco.ca.uky.edu
This growers guide probably has more information than you'd ever want:

http://www2.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/id/id160/id160.pdf

 

pitchfork

Lifer
May 25, 2012
4,030
605
Cosmic,
Was dark tobacco bred from burley? I don't know, but the different classification for burley vs. dark has to do mainly with how you grow it, what it looks like in the field and who buys it. Plus, darks are more oily than burley. (Got any hair left? ha ha)
Here's a pic of the two varieties growing side by side.
image010.jpg


 
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woodsroad

Lifer
Oct 10, 2013
11,590
15,293
SE PA USA
Incidentally, the Dark Fired harvest is now underway. All across the growing region, the barns are getting filled with leaf and the smouldering fires lit. Here's a couple of photos made a few days ago and sent to me by a friend who is a Dark Fired farmer in Calloway County, KY:


IMG_0639_edit-vi.jpg

IMG_0636_edit-vi.jpg

 

jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,570
27,077
Carmel Valley, CA
Dark Fired tobacco is a variety of tobacco just like Dark Air, Burley, Flue Cured etc.
I think Burley is a type of tobacco leaf, whereas Dark Fired and Flue Cured are processes. Don't know off hand what "Dark Air" means.

 
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Was dark tobacco bred from burley?

That is beyond my knowledge. But, I would think that dark varieties come from the same varieties. And, I am certain it is a burley. There is no one variety known as "burley." There are literally thousands.
That's a cool picture, pitchfork.
I am sure that many varieties of tobacco are fire cured, but to be Kentucky Dark Fired, it has to be a Kentucky Burley. Even some Virginias are fire cured, but just not in the same process to give it that distinct flavor.
If I am not mistaken, Dark Fired was used in chewing tobaccos, until the dwindling of that market.
As for what is in those blends ODF and KDF by MacBarons... I know ODF has a Virginia added to the processed Kentucky Dark Fired leaf, but I have not smoked KDF by them, so I have no idea. I do know that you can buy pure Kentucky Dark Fired leaf from P Stokkebyes. I like it by itself occasionally. I really don;t think it is as overwhelming as some of the African Virginias. In fact, I have wondered if it wasn't the Virginia giving ODF it's strength.

 
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woodsroad

Lifer
Oct 10, 2013
11,590
15,293
SE PA USA
Dark Fired is a distinct cultivar.
Dark Air (uses burley) and Flue Cured (uses Virginia) are processes, but the finished products are referred to by those names.
"If I am not mistaken, Dark Fired was used in chewing tobaccos, until the dwindling of that market. "

Chew is still the primary market for Dark Fired. Many of the companies that manufacture chew are located in the Dark Fired growing region of Kentucky. My farmer friend often delivers the finished leaf directly to the factories. When I asked him about buying a few bails for producing War Horse, he was a little hesitant, since he didn't want to drive all the way to Lane Ltd. in Georgia.

 
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pitchfork

Lifer
May 25, 2012
4,030
605
Dark Air (uses burley) and Flue Cured (uses Virginia) are processes, but the finished products are referred to by those names.
Dark Air and Dark Fired use some of the same "cultivars." I'm wondering, though, what pipesandcigars.com mean by "dark burley" when they sell that in bulk. Is that a "dark tobacco" strain/cultivar or is that a white burley that is for some reason dark?

 

pitchfork

Lifer
May 25, 2012
4,030
605
Sometimes the name and the actual plant don't match. Like Modern Virginia is a burley blend. ODF has some Virginia in it. It makes buying these blends a little buyer-be-ware.
Glad we cleared that up.

 

woodsroad

Lifer
Oct 10, 2013
11,590
15,293
SE PA USA
Actually, it's all the same plant, tomato leaves left over from making Campbell's soup, but it's sprayed with different flavorings. The big "tobacco" companies get together once a year to come up with confusing names, fix prices and decide how much free stuff they can give away before people get really offended. None of this, of course, applies to premium cigars, which are rolled out of recycled grocery bags and cardboard made from dehydrated sewage sludge by the developmentally disabled in a sheltered workshop on the outskirts of Newark, NJ. Tobacco hasn't been grown in the western hemisphere in over 100 years.

 
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